Lipstick
by TheNovelArtist
Summary: They'd been dancing around each other for nearly a year, only to be brought together by lipstick.


Adrien had honestly never _not _wanted to do a photoshoot more in his entire life.

But he was nearly twenty and at his prime, and for models, that meant perfume photoshoots. And perfume photoshoots usually included suggestive content.

Adrien was thrilled that he was able to steer this ad away from him being half-naked with a female model. However, the new plan was for him to look like some woman had already ravaged him.

He had never _not_ wanted to do a photoshoot more in his entire life.

"I don't know, Marinette," he said to the young woman who was currently adjusting the pre-wrinkled shirt on him. "I just don't want to know how the make-up crew is going to make lipstick prints on me."

"Worried, kitty?" she whispered, looking up at him through those long lashes. It had been almost a year since there had been an accidental reveal. Needless to say, it had made things insanely awkward for the two of them. Especially considering Marinette had confessed her love for Adrien not two weeks prior and Chat had tried to propose to Ladybug a week after that.

Knowing what they knew now… it ruined their partnership a bit. Hence why they weren't in any sort of relationship until both of them were able to pull their acts together.

Which, they had, in Adrien's opinion. They just hadn't wanted to tackle the elephant in the room.

"Yeah," he said. "I'm mostly worried that the way they're going to put said lipstick marks on me is to… well… kiss me."

Marinette jolted. "O-oh," she said, a blush coming to her cheeks.

Adrien felt his cheeks heat, as well. "And I'm… not looking forward to that."

"What, you don't want girls hanging all over you?" She tried to smile. She tried to keep her voice light. But it was pained.

And so was his smile. "Well…" He rubbed the back of his neck. "Honestly, there's only one woman I would want that from."

Their eyes locked, and Adrien could feel his heart pounding painfully in his chest.

Well, he sure went and smacked that elephant, didn't he?

Marinette cleared her throat and gave his shirt one last adjustment. "There," she said. "Um… You're good to go."

It hurt to smile, both his cheeks and his heart. Just like always, the moment one would toe the line, and they'd both take three steps back. "Thanks."

She shot him a forced smile that lasted only a second before turning and leaving him to go to the make-up crew.

He didn't go right away. He took a second to pull himself back together and kick himself. They agreed no relationship now. They agreed _no relationship now._

But that didn't stop his love of her. Didn't stop the way his heart pounded whenever she entered the room. Didn't stop the way he found everything from her smile to her confidence to her body extremely attractive. He couldn't help it.

But they agreed no relationship now. Not until they were able to pull themselves together during battle.

Which, they never would. Chat could no longer _not _be completely affected by his lady, and Ladybug couldn't stop worrying over him. Knowing who each other was had been much more dangerous than he thought.

As twisted as it was, Adrien wished he'd never met Marinette. It would have been so much easier to find a stranger under the mask. Having Ladybug be an incredible woman who had earned his full respect and friendly love in her own right had wrecked him.

And he knew he'd wrecked her, considering she was in love with Adrien.

It was a mess. And no matter if either of them were ready to clean it up or not, neither took any action to do so.

After mentally screaming at himself to pull it together, Adrien forced himself to head to make-up.

"So," he began, forcing a smile on for the ladies. "What's the plan to put lipstick all over me?" He just wanted to know what he needed to prepare for. Particularly if they were going to be all over him.

"Well," one of the ladies said, smirk on her face. "I didn't know you had a girlfriend, Agreste."

Adrien froze. Say what now?

"So, the easiest way to make you up was to give her a tube of lipstick and just have her mark you. It would be the most realistic, too."

_Girlfriend_? "What?"

The girl pointed to the chair, silently directing him to sit. "Yeah. She's so sweet. I always suspected that there was more between you two then just model and designer."

Model and designer? He was the model, but…

Marinette?

Adrien felt like he was losing his mind. Was he teleported to a different universe where Marinette was his girlfriend?

Wait? Was she _only_ his girlfriend here in this dimension?

Still, he was the obedient model and sat down in the chair, letting the crew do touch-up make up and spray his hair with ten different products to put it into place and make it look appropriately mused.

Now, the lipstick.

"I sent her in the back if you want to have a little quality time with her," the head make-up artist said with a wink.

Despite his fierce blush, Adrien needed little prompting.

He found Marinette hidden in the dressing room. Thankfully, it was empty besides the two of them. She was looking though clothes on a rack, her back towards him.

He was able to sneak into the room and close the door behind her. She flinched at the soft click, half turning toward him before turning back to her work.

"So," he began, walking up behind her and causing her to jump when he put his hands on her hips. "Girlfriend, huh?"

She sighed, her hands immediately flying up to her face and effectively muffling whatever she was trying to say.

"What?" he said, lowering his head closer to hers.

She forced her hands away from her face, clasping them together in front of her lips. "You looked really uncomfortable with the prospect of how they were going to put kisses on you," she said, her voice quiet and shy. "Actually, you've looked really miserable with this whole photoshoot. And… with what you said earlier…" She trailed off, turning her face away. "I just… thought maybe I could help make it easier for you."

"By torturing me in the process?"

She whipped her head back to look at him.

His heart was racing. She looked to be as shocked and nervous about this whole situation as he was. "Marinette, you didn't really think that putting your lips all over me wouldn't completely ruin me, would you bug?"

She gaped like a fish for a moment. "We can be professional."

"No," he said, shaking his head. "No, we can't. And you know it."

"Can't or won't?"

Adrien frowned. "Won't," he said, his grip on her hips tightening as he pulled her a half-step back closer to him. "I'm just gonna call it out right now: we're still in love with each other."

Marinette's entire body sagged at that.

He let his chin rest on her shoulder, happily relishing the feel of being even this close to her. Well, the elephant was sure addressed, now. "Bug. My feelings for you haven't changed. And you should know that even though you told me that I better take back that ring I proposed to you with, I still have it. I'm just waiting for the time you'll take it."

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see her eyes start to water, putting her on the verge of tears. "Kitty…"

"So," he said. "That being said, I'll repeat: if you think that I'll be able to hold myself together while you are putting your lips all over me, think again. You're going to _ruin_ me, bug."

Her blush deepened. "You…" She swallowed. "You still have the ring?" Her voice was whispery, as though she couldn't say it any louder.

Adrien grinned. "Yeah," he said, his heart being painfully squeezed inside his chest. "I do."

There was nothing but silence between the two of them for a moment before Marinette snapped back to reality.

"Um…" she said, stepping out of his grasp and turning to face him. "We should get you ready."

He sighed. "So, you're just going to avoid it?" he asked, "Or was that a firm no?"

"It's a 'we have a job to do and now isn't the time for that conversation'."

An inkling of hope slipped through his mind. "Swear it to me?" he asked. "Swear we _will_ talk about this later."

Suddenly, they were chest to chest. Adrien didn't know how that happened, but he sure wasn't complaining.

She lifted her hand, placing it right on his heart and stopping it in the process. "I swear, Adrien."

He smiled, warm hope at the prospect of there possibly being a 'them' blooming in his chest. "So," he asked, his mind somehow reminding him of the present predicament despite it not functioning at the moment. "Are you going to kiss me? Or not?"

His heart was in his throat the moment she pulled the lipstick out of her back pocket. "Yeah," she whispered. "So, let's make it count."

"My lady," he said, his breath already coming in short pants as he watched Marinette paint her lips in a bright red color. "I'm at your mercy. Mess me up good."

"Something tells me I don't have to try hard."

She was right; she didn't.

The moment she put her hands on him, one landing on his neck and the other on his jaw, he was a goner. Completely and totally. No longer was this Adrien and Marinette at a photoshoot. This was Adrien and Marinette, period. End of story.

He let his eyes shut, not bothering to keep them open as Marinette placed her lips on him. Above the corner of his mouth. On his cheek. His jaw. His ear.

She pulled away, and he heard the click of the her opening the lipstick again. His eyes opened lazily to watch her reapply. "Where are you aiming next?" he asked.

"Why?" she said, putting the lipstick back in her pocket.

"So I can prepare."

She smirked. "My secret."

His knees were going to give out on him, and he was going to end up dead on the floor. In fact, he was certain that he almost collapsed when her lips landed on his throat. He gasped, every part of him dying slowly with every touch from her lips. Lips that then landed on his collarbone, then even lower on his chest.

What a sweet death.

Another application of lipstick, and her lips landed on his chest once again, his neck, his jaw, his temple. She pulled away one last time, and he heard the tube of lipstick click. He was barely able to keep his eyes open. _What's your next target, my lady?_

Her hands came up to caress his cheeks, but she stopped short of his face. "Are you okay, kitty?"

"I'm dying," he admitted. "Finish me, bug. Make it sweet."

She giggled. "So dramatic."

Those perfectly lips coated in a layer of red, red lipstick then landed on his lips, and all self-control went flying out the window as he grabbed her, holding her tightly and smashing their lips together.

Professionalism be damned, he was going to kiss her for all it was worth.

Her hands ran through his product-crusted hair and down his chest and then back up to hold his cheeks. His hands were everywhere on her, grabbing at her sides and arms and cheeks. Restraint just didn't exist.

Eventually, she broke away with a gasp. Adrien himself was panting hard enough that he felt he was gonna pass out. Thank goodness he was backed against a wall because he was sure he'd fall over otherwise. But even though his legs were jelly, he was grabbing onto her for all it was worth. Just as she was holding onto him. They stood there for a moment, panting heavily, clinging to each other; a beautiful disaster.

"I… I think," Marinette said between breaths, "You should go… and… photoshoot."

He didn't want to. He _really _didn't want to. "Marry me."

"What?"

He looked down at her. "You missed the previous proposal of 'I still have the ring' so let me spell it out for you: marry me, bug."

She was frozen in shock. "Kitty, you can't be serious."

"I am," he insisted. "I one thousand percent am. Because I can't stand it anymore. Marry me. Be my wife."

"Chat," she panted. "Be reasonable—"

"That is utterly impossible for me to do when you wreck me like that," he interrupted. "You always have wrecked me, driven me to ruin. Bug, you are my perfect partner and I'm not letting you go. I love all of you; you love all of me. Why are we not together?"

She opened her mouth, likely to argue, but nothing came out. Slowly, her mouth shut and her expression became a vulnerable one. "I… you really still have the ring? You… you're not just going to go buy one and say it was the ring? Because I remember that ring. Vividly."

His heart skipped. "You do?"

"It's heard to forget when the man who holds half your heart proposes to you."

He couldn't help it, he kissed her again. Hard. Biting at her sweet lips just as she was nipping at his.

There was going to be no photoshoot at this rate.

"I will run home," he said between kisses, "and grab it the instant I'm released from this photoshoot." He kissed her again. "And then I will run to your house…" Another kiss. "And drop to my knees…" Yet another. "And beg you to be my bride. And if you say yes, I will yowl from every fricking rooftop in Paris about how excited I am that you will be my wife."

Their wild kisses slowed to a stop, leaving Marinette clinging to Adrien once again just to stand upright. Honestly, Adrien was shocked they weren't on the floor at this point.

Slowly, an amused smile came to Marinette's face, one that eventually split as laughter bubbled up out of her. "You're so ridiculous," she said between giggles.

He just shrugged. "So what?" was all he could say.

She turned that smile on him, and Adrien felt like he could fly. "Well," she said. "How about you come ask me properly after the photoshoot. Because…" her grin widened. "I'm gonna need a moment to process the fact I'm going to marry the love of my life."

He yanked her into a bone-crushing hug, and she grabbed onto him, squeezing him tight. He was positively over the moon and not coming down any time soon.

"You should go," she eventually whispered, though her hold on him barely loosened. "You're probably holding up the photoshoot."

He grumbled. "Fine. But only because I know you're right."

Reluctantly, he put her down and the duo let each other go. As hard as it was, he forced himself away from her, turning his back, making it two steps, and hearing a crash.

He whipped back around to see Marinette on the floor, holding onto the rack of clothes that was already rolling away.

"Marinette!" he called, instantly rushing back to her side. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," she said, her voice higher than normal, something that always happened when she was embarrassed or nervous. "I mean, the love of my live just made out with me and asked me to marry him, so I'm not totally freaking out or anything. No. Not at all."

The fear coursing through him faded quickly, leaving him a blushing, chuckling mess. He'd done this to her. She was on the floor, unable to stand because of him. He felt prideful knowing that this was her reaction to him. "Okay. As long as you're okay."

"Y-yeah." She said with an awkward, crooked smile. "Just… give me a minute."

He couldn't keep the smile off his face. He leaned forward to press a kiss to her forehead. "Take it easy, okay."

"I'll be fine," she assured.

"You're Ladybug. You always are."

With another kiss to her forehead, he forced himself up and headed back to the make-up department for approval.

Once approved—the head make-up artist was looking a little _too_ smug for Adrien's liking—he was ushered over to actually take the photos. The photographer kept yelling orders at him, occasionally telling him to look dreamy.

That was easy. Like Adrien could think of anything but his darling Marinette, anyway. Not while he was wearing her lipstick all over his body like a brand.

Honestly, he hoped that this was the first time of many. This was his new favorite way to wear make-up.


End file.
